IF things were different
by pleasedontjudgeme
Summary: Would Sano still meet Mizuki? Fall in love with her? If she never went to Ohsaka Gakuen but St. Blossoms Academy? Rating may not be necessary but just in case.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: Own hana kimi? I wish.**

Ok. So she had to admit. Wanting to get into Ohsaka Gakuen was a long shot. And it hadn't worked. Dammit! She should have known that her brother would research everything beforehand. And that he would never allow her to go.

But surprisingly, her dad had been extremely understanding about it.

"Ok, ok go back to Japan if you want. But….."

And he had gone and enrolled her in a girl's school. _St. Blossoms Academy_. She sighed. Fat chance she'd get to know him now….

Never one to be gloomy, Mizuki pushed the thoughts out of her head and grinned happily at the St. Blossom's uniform that she was packing. After enrolling, they had sent the uniform from Japan. It was so cute! She had always loved Japanese uniforms.

Maybe it wouldn't be so bad after all…. St Blossoms _was_ within walking distance of Ohsaka Gakuen and it was also their sister school…. Maybe she'd run into him.

With slightly higher spirits Mizuki finished her packing and left to spend her last day in American with Julia.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: No. I don't own Hana Kimi. You can probably tell…**

Mizuki stood at the gates of her new school and stared. _This_ was St. Blossom's Academy? It was like she had stepped into some sort of fairytale. The buildings were huge, like a series of million dollar mansions connected together. They were majestic and flawless. She could smell a light sweet scent of rose and there was light classical music in the background. If not for the sign at the towering iron gates, no one would have guessed that it was a school.

Looking around she saw no signs that schools usually had that told people where the classes were, where the principal's office was, where administration was etc. She felt panic welling up inside her as she checked her watch. School would start in about half an hour and it looked life it would take her a long time to find the administration office. Finally Mizuki decided that there was nothing she could do but explore the place. Maybe she would be lucky and meet someone.

After 15 minutes of hopeless wandering Mizuki was about to give up. What kind of school is this?? She had been afraid to enter any buildings in case she got trapped in the maze like corridors she had seen when she peered through windows. She sighed.

Suddenly Mizuki felt a hand on her shoulder and heard a voice behind her.

"Lost?"

She looked around and up into the face of a tall and extremely good looking boy with shoulder length dark hair wearing Ohsaka Gakuen's uniform. He was smiling at her.

"Nanba Minami, a pleasure to meet you"

"I'm Ashiya Mizuki….I'm a new transfer student from America, and um….."

He smiled once more, and nodded as if he understood her unfinished sentence. "This school is kind of big huh? And slightly intimidating… Come on, I'll show you admin."

"I'm kind of familiar with this place…. All the females in my family came here," he explained as they walked along.

As they reached administration Mizuki gave him a genuinely warm and grateful smile.

"I don't know that would have happened if you hadn't found me. Thank you so much!" She gave a low bow and reached out to shake his hand.

He grasped her hand for a second longer than he should have and gave her a gentle smile.

"Anytime. Hopefully I'll see you around again sometime."

And he meant it. It was not a pick-up line like the kind he usually used on all girls he met. He genuinely meant it, for her warm smile reminded him of a girl he once loved.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: Do I need one at the beginning of every chapter? ****sigh**

**No. ****I don't own anything**

Mizuki stared at Minami's retreating figure dumbly as he disappeared into the distance and suddenly jumped when she heard an impatient "ahem" behind her. She turned and saw an extremely beautiful woman around 30 years old, immaculately made up staring at her with critical eyes.

"Ashiya Mizuki-chan, I presume?"

"ye –"

"Excellent. I see you got here in one piece. You could have been a little more prompt though. Class starts in ten minutes."

"I'm sorry but um –"

"I don't want to hear any excuses, thank you. Come, I'll take you to your class."

Mizuki bit back her retort with great effort. What was with the tone in which she said "chan"? Why was it so sarcastic?? But it probably wasn't a good idea to start an argument with a teacher on the first day of school. For once she decided to hold her tongue. She obediently followed, not really listening to the teacher's endless droning about the school history and the rules and the etiquette.

Mizuki was growing more and more nervous by the minute. What if she didn't suit this school? What if they were all like this horrid teacher? How would she cope with it? Finally they arrived at a door. And before she even had a chance to prepare herself, Mizuki was ushered into the classroom.

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Minami walked to Ohsaka Gakuen thinking about Ashiya Mizuki. She wasn't the type he usually went for, not drop-dead gorgeous, did not have a good figure. And yet for some reason, he could not get her out of his mind. She had her own sort of charm and to add to that, she was extremely cute.

"Oi! Nanba!" He turned to see two of the boarders in the dorm that he was head of. One had blonde hair and the other had black hair. "So lucky! You can be walking around here at this time of the day. Don't even have to go to class!" the blonde said.

"Nakatsu… I needed to go to St. Blossoms for business matters. What's more, you don't have any right to say that. You and Sano are walking around here. Oh and you should show me some respect. Call me Senpai."

"Like I'm ever going to call you senpai! Hah! Business at St. Blossoms. You were probably there trying to meet hot chicks." The one called Nakatsu laughed.

"As a matter of fact I did meet – " Nanba trailed off. For some reason he didn't want to talk about Ashiya Mizuki the way he talked about all the other girls.

"Yes? You met…..?" Nakatsu taunted.

The black haired boy called Sano sighed and walked away silently. Nakatsu and Nanba argued way too much. They were already going to be late for class and Nakatsu was still wasting time here with Nanba.

"Oi!! Izumi! Wait up! Don't be so mean and leave without me!" Nakatsu abandoned his task of being mean to Nanba and ran after his best friend.

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Mizuki stood at the front of the class staring back at the numerous pairs of eyes all fixed upon her. She felt a little awkward and hastily bowed low. "I'm Ashiya Mizuki. Pleased to meet you all. I hope we can get along." She smiled at her new classmates, hoping she had made a good impression.

"Ahem"

Mizuki jumped. The teacher was staring at her.

"Please. Pull yourself together! I'd like you to pay more attention please! We cannot have you associating with these girls if you are so air headed–"

Mizuki could stand it no longer. She could not just stand here to be insulted. "YOU –"

But she did not have the chance to shout. She was drowned out by various noises:

"SO MEAN!"

"Sensei! Stop picking on new students!"

"You're always like this!!"

Suddenly in the midst of all the noise a girl with long brown hair stepped forward.

"Kuroki Sensei…" she smiled sweetly "We can take it from here. Our homeroom Sensei will be back in a moment. And I'll ensure that Ashiya-san knows every rule and etiquette at this school." She spoke politely but her voice was firm and slightly cold. "Don't worry, you can leave now."

Kuroki Sensei looked at the girl who had spoken and then scanned the indignant class with her cool black eyes. Then without a word, she left.

The girl turned to Mizuki and smiled warmly. "I'm Umeda Rio, call me Rio."

"I'm Mizuki. Thank you so much for standing up for me – she turned to the whole class – thank you to everyone. None of you know me but you stood up for me just the same. I'm glad, so glad I could be put into this class." Mizuki bowed low.

Rio smiled once more. "Come on, let's find you a seat."

As she followed Rio down the rows of desks Mizuki breathed a sigh of relief. Maybe she would fit in here after all.

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"Ah Nanba. How nice of you to join us."

Nanba gave an apologetic smile as he entered his classroom. "Sorry that I'm late Sensei. I, uh, had business matters at St. Blossoms Academy this morning."

The teacher sighed. He waved Nanba to his seat and continued his lesson.

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"Nanba Minami! Tell me, what is the answer to question 25?"

Nanba awoke from his reverie. "Huh? What?" Ashiya Mizuki's face had surfaced in his mind again.

The teacher shook his head. "You're late to my class _and_ you daydream?? Get out." He opened the classroom door and looked expectantly at Nanba.

Sighing, Nanba stood up. He had no choice but to do as he was told. As soon as he exited the class the teacher slammed to door behind him.

Nanba leaned on the closed door and sighed. What was this girl doing to him? This… had never happened before.

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_Thanks for reading.. I finally updated. I'm not extremely happy with this chapter though… I need a muse._


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I'm sure**** that by now everyone knows that I don't own hana kimi. This is my last disclaimer in this story.**

Rio led Mizuki to an empty seat near the back of the class. "Is this seat ok? If you can't see well, someone can swap with you."

"Oh, no. That's ok. I have pretty good eyesight. Plus, I like this seat," Mizuki gestured to the window nearby.

Rio smiled yet again. "yeah, that's why I like sitting here too," She indicated to her own seat immediately in front of Mizuki. "Well, let's be good friends ok? Can I call you Mizuki?"

Mizuki felt completely reassured by this act of friendship. "Of course! When I met Kuroki Sensei I was so afraid of being shunned but now I feel much better. Thank you Rio."

By this time two other girls had approached Mizuki's desk. One was small with about shoulder length blond hair and a cute face and the other was a beauty with longish black hair, a small face with gentle features. Rio introduced them to Mizuki. "These are my best friends: Abeno Erika and Amagasaki Kanna. Erika, as you can see is extremely cute and is an extremely lively person. Kanna, although only in her first year is already on the student council, which is an unbelievably amazing feat you know. Also, she is extremely popular with the girls here and the Ohsaka Gakuen boys because of her gentle and kind personality."

Kanna blushed. "Don't praise me so much Rio. I always feel so embarrassed when you do that!"

"Well, it's kinda true….." Erika and Rio retorted teasingly.

Mizuki felt that she would like these people a lot. Their playful banter put her at ease. "It's nice to meet you! I'm Ashiya Mizuki.I hope we can become good friends"

Erika and Kanna both smiled at her. "Of course we can!" Erika exclaimed while Kanna, who seemed more reserved and quiet simply nodded and gave Mizuki a warm smile. "Ok, ok! We can drop the formalities!" Erika said excitedly. "It great having someone else join us! Tell you what Mizuki – "

"Be careful she doesn't talk you to death" Rio interjected laughingly. Erika pretended to be hurt and proceeded to sob on the black-haired girl's shoulder. "Kanna! Rio's being mean again!"

As Rio opened her mouth the door of the classroom opened and their form teacher entered. Giving quick smiles and whispers of "talk to you later"to Mizuki the girls hastened to their seats.

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"Hey." Nanaba looked up. "Kicked out of class?"

"Oh Sano. It's you. That idiot isn't with you is he?" Nanba looked around for the blond boy.

"Nah, he went to soccer practise." Sano settled himself on the grass. This happened to be his favourite spot for naps between classes. "So what are you doing here? I wouldn't expect someone as important as you to want to hide." Nanba studied the indifferent boy next to him. They had never talked much and did they not argue like he did with Nakatsu. He knew little about Sano except for the fact that the younger boy did pretty well in school had excelled in high jump in junior high but seemed to have given it up. Sano turned to him. "Yeah?"

Nanba turned away and said laughingly "Class has ended already? I lost track of the time." Sano looked at his senpai.

"You skipped class… and decided to hide here?"

"Correction: I was kicked out of class and decided to hide here." Nanaba suddenly felt a bit ashamed. He was dorm leader and was supposed to set a good example. But Sano did not seem to be bothered by this. He had made no response so Nanba tried to fill the silence "So what are you doing here?"

"Hiding from someone" was the short response.

Nanba felt intrigued. His spirits lightening, he asked amusedly "From? Ex-girlfriend? Or some girl who wants to express her undying love for you? "

"My old manager, Yamashina Rika"

"Who is a pretty girl right?"

Sano rolled his eyes and ignored Nanba. The idiot. It was impossible to have a serious conversation with him. He shouldn't have said anything. Nanba's mind always wandered to girls. Getting no response from Sano, Nanba stood up, clapped the younger boy on the back as some form of encouragement and left.

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Classes had finally ended for the day and Mizuki was completely exhausted. Not only did St Blossoms academy teach the usual subjects like maths and English etc. but they also had classes for things like dancing and etiquette, and Mizuki, being the kind of girl she was – extremely clumsy – did not readily fit into these activities.

"Don't worry, Mizuki!" her new friends tried to convince her "You'll eventually get the hang of it!"

"I was initially terrible at these classes too!" Kanna exclaimed kindly. Mizuki looked up at the dark haired girl with surprise.

"Oh my gosh yeah!! You couldn't guess it from the way she is now… but she really wasn't graceful at all." Erika laughed but added as an afterthought "that was when she was about 6 though."

"Erika! Is that meant to make Mizuki feel better??" Rio scolded. She turned to Mizuki. "I'll help you, ok? I promise."

Cheering up at the kind words, Mizuki grinned. "Thank you all so much. I'll try harder from now on!"

Rio, Kanna and Erika walked Mizuki to the school dormitories where she was staying. Mizuki looked up at the enormous building with the same awe with which she stared at the school when she first arrived. Waving goodbye to her three friends, Mizuki entered the building.

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_Boring __and pointless?? Sorry. Ummm it's a bit slow now but I promise I'll get on with the story soon._


	5. Chapter 5

**No disclaimer just story!!**

Mizuki was exploring the city delightedly. After organising her room, packing away her luggage and meeting her roommate Yumemi, she had decided to go for a walk. After all, she had not really seen anything other than the airport and the school. She knew that Rio and the others would have gladly shown her around but she wanted to spend a little time alone. The city centre was filled with students from various schools, and the hustle and bustle of the streets made Mizuki lose herself in the moment. Not noticing where she was going, she followed the flow of a large stream of young people and ended up outside a nightclub. Mizuki looked up at the neon signs in surprise. Feeling like she shouldn't be there, which of course, she shouldn't, she turned to leave. If she got caught in a place like this in her school uniform, she'd be _so dead_. She wasn't about to let herself be expelled on the first day of school.

Suddenly someone grabbed her arm. Mizuki spun around. Two tall boys stood there grinning at her. "Leaving before the party's even started?" Mizuki grimaced and tried to shake her arm free. "Don't worry! We go to Ohsaka Gakuen. You go to our sister school right? We'll take care of you." Mizuki pulled away, hard.

"No thanks" she replied coolly and wishing that they would leave her alone she turned and tried to leave again. She felt the strong grip closing on her wrist and she snatched her arm away angrily. "Just leave me alone ok?? I don't _want_ to hang out with you. I'm not here to go to a party, I just got lost ok? Now I want to leave. So let go!"

"Whoa! You're pretty tough." One boy turned to the other and grinned "I like girls like this." He grabbed both of Mizuki's wrists with one hand. "Let's go" Mizuki suddenly remembered what she had learnt in self defence classes that she had gone to with Julia. She tried to twist out of his grasp and lash out with her foot like the instructor had told them to practise. The boy dodged easily and tightened his grip. He pulled her towards him and Mizuki fell over with a cry.

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Sano had not intended to come this way. He had taken Yujrio for his walk on their usual route but he had been thinking about what Rika had said to him and lost track of where he was heading. This wasn't really the best place to come; it was where the wilder youth of the area hung out. Thinking that he had better get out of there fast, Sano turned to leave but stopped in his tracks when he heard a girl's panicked yelling. Looking around he saw two guys from his school, one of them had a girl with long brown hair in his grasp. She wearing what looked like the St. Blossom's uniform. The boys' faces were twisted into amused smiles whilst hers was filled with anger and pain. The girl tried to escape but her efforts were futile. Sano wondered if he should interfere. He did not want to get into something that might be out of his depth. Then he saw the girl fall. Painfully. He rushed forward.

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Mizuki tried to stand up when she heard someone approaching. It might be one of their friends! Then she'd have no chance of escaping. "What do you think you're doing to her?" She looked up. It was Sano Izumi!

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Nanba had been invited to a party. Having had a bad day, he had impulsively decided to go with no intention of enjoying himself. As he approached the nightclub he saw a small group outside. It seemed to be some sort of confrontation. There were three boys who all looked oddly familiar and a girl who was strugling to get up. He could not see her properly but it looked like she was wearing a St. Blossoms uniform. Then one of the boys spoke. Nanba recognised his voice. "What do you think you're doing? Leave her alone. Yeah, I know her! Stay away from my girlfriend." It was Sano.

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Sano couldn't believe what he had just said. It seemed like a lame excuse to get them to go away. And it didn't seem to be working. The two guys grinned. "You're from Ohsaka Gakuen as well? Come on, that means we're like brothers right? So share your cute girl with us." Sano stared in disbelief. Before he could come up with some sort of retaliation, someone tapped. He turned. "Nanba!"

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Nanba had rushed forward when he heard Sano's voice. He knew that Sano was a good kid, and did not know how complicated stuff like this could be. As he drew nearer he saw the girl on the ground. Ashiya Mizuki! What was she doing here? But he could not ponder this right now. He had to solve the problem at hand. Nanba turned to the boys. "You better get out of here fast. I think you guys know who I am and what I'm allowed to do to you guys. A few words from me could get you suspended. A formal letter to the principal could get you expelled." His tone was commanding and cold. The boys had no choice but to leave. Muttering angrily under their breaths, they left.

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Sano felt stupid. Nanba had solved the problem so quickly and effortlessly unlike himself. He had acted like an idiot in front of a girl he didn't even know. He turned to go. "Nanba, you take it from here then." The older boy nodded.

"Ah! Wait!" the girl cried out after him, "thank you so much for helping me!"

Sano did not look back. He lifted an arm in response and soon walked out of sight. Nanba turned to Mizuki who could not tear her eyes away from the direction Sano had gone. "Ashiya-san? I didn't think I'd see you again so soon. It's not the best idea to come here at night you know."

Mizuki turned to look at him. It was the boy from the morning. She grinned sheepishly. "Thank you for helping me again. You've saved me twice today! I didn't mean to come here… I got lost trying to explore the city. Guess I should find a guide next time."

Nanba breathed a sigh of relief. He had been worried for a second that despite Mizuki's innocent exterior she might be some sort of crazy party girl. "Are you ok? Can you stand up?"

"I think so…" Mizuki grasped Nanba's outstretched hand and tried her legs. She seemed fine.

"Come on," said Nanba "I'll take you home. Or do you live in the school dorms?" Mizuki nodded. As they walked Nanba looked at Mizuki. She seemed to be thinking about something. He was nervous. She seemed so silent, so ponderous. He didn't want to say anything wrong. But what was she thinking?

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Mizuki was thinking about Sano Izumi. He had helped her hadn't he? Why did he just leave like that? But she was kind of happy. Not only had she met him, he had also defended her. Now she would have an excuse to go and find him. Yet she felt tentative at that idea. He seemed kind of cold.

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Nanba tried to start a conversation. "That guy who helped you… I was pretty surprised to see him there, I mean he doesn't seem the type to hang out at places like that" - Mizuki nodded to show she was listening - "His name is Sano Izumi, by the way."

"I know" Mizuki answered absentmindedly.

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_O.o i spent four chapters talking about ONE day. Now that the intoroductory stuff is over... MWAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHA =_


	6. Chapter 6

_Sorry for n__ot having updated for so long. My laptop broke down and my muse abandoned me and I had exams. The last reason is really just an excuse because I don't really study for exams anyway… _

_I'm rambling, let the story continue!_

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_"His name is Sano Izumi, by the way."_

"_I know" Mizuki answered absentmindedly._

Nanba Minami was playing this scene over in his head. How had she known Sano's name? He had heard Sano say that Ashiya Mizuki was his girlfriend. But that was really unlikely. But it meant they knew each other right? Or…?

"Senpai!" Nakatsu called loudly and mockingly "you're looking spaced out this morning! Thinking about girls you met in the weekend?"

Nanba turned round to see the blond boy walk through the school gates with Sano. He stopped and glanced at Sano. The boy was quiet as usual. Or was he unusually quiet? Was Sano thinking about Ashiya Mizuki? No, of course he wouldn't be thinking about her. But then again, why not? Sano had stepped forward to help her. Plus, she was so cute.

Nanba silently cursed himself. Why was he so obsessed? "Hey Sano – he tried to sound casual – you know that girl on Friday night?"

"What girl?" Nakatsu interrupted "Izumi! What girl?"

Sano's tone was uncaring was he answered Nanba "Yeah?"

"Uh, uh," Nanba stuttered "how do you know her?

"I don't" Sano gave him a strange look.

"Well… she was alright afterwards, if you're interested. She wasn't hurt or anything."

Sano nodded. "Right. That's great."

"Guys! Hello! I'm still here! What are you talking about? Izumi! Is there something you're not telling me?" Nakatsu interrupted loudly once more.

Sano clapped him on the shoulder. "Don't worry man" he said and headed towards their classroom.

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Sitting in maths, Mizuki was struggling to solve the problem. There were so many factors and variables that her brain could not seem to cope. She stared dumbly at the textbook as she tried to work out her next step.

"Ashiya-san, do you need help? This problem isn't that hard. Maybe your American education isn't enough to cope with this? Or are you just daydreaming?" Mizuki looked up. Kuroki Sensei was staring down at her angrily. "So? What's the answer?"

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"Mizuki-chan are you ok?" Rio asked concernedly. They were in sewing class where they were free to talk. 'I don't see why Kuroki Sensei has to pick on you like that. It's plain mean! But… it really is a problem if you don't know how to solve that problem. Shuna can help you, she's really good at maths." Shuna was a girl with long back hair who had been friends with Rio since kindergarten. She was also in their class. She had just been introduced to Mizuki as she wasn't at school the day Mizuki arrived. She smiled at Mizuki.

"Yeah! If you need help, just say so!"

"Thanks so much, but I don't really need help with maths" Mizuki explained, "I wasn't really concentrating on it." She blushed. "I was thinking of how to solve the problem with this guy…"

"Oooo… Mizuki! How long have you been here? This is the fourth day? And you already know guys?" Erika leaned across the table towards Mizuki, grinning.

"Ah, n – no! It's not like it sounds!" Mizuki hurriedly explained what had happened to her on Friday night (it was now Monday) and seeing the confused looks on her friends' faces she went on to explain her reason for coming back to Japan. "So… I had the chance to meet Sano Izumi on Friday right? My problem is how I'm going to meet him again. It might seem strange to go and find him but my excuse is to thank him right? So if I did, would I take a gift? Would I go and wait outside the Ohsaka Gakuen gates?" Mizuki finished.

"Wow… Mizuki-chan, you must really like Sano Izumi!"

"That's such a cool story Mizuki! I can't believe it. It sounds like the plot of a manga."

"This is _so_ exciting!"

Mizuki's new friends exclaimed their shock and admiration. Loudly.

"Ahem! Girls! Keep the noise down!"

Rio smiled apologetically at the sewing Sensei. "Sorry Sensei. We were getting a bit carried away. We'll be quieter."

"Aw Rio you're such a teacher's pet" Shuna teased.

Rio stuck her tongue out at her friend and turned to Mizuki. "So what are you planning to do?"

"I don't know," Mizuki admitted.

"If you're going to thank Sano Izumi, you're going to have to thank Nanba-Senpai as well right?" Kanna reasoned.

"Yes, of course. But somehow I feel less awkward about going to thank him. Plus, he seems to come here to Ohsaka Gakuen sometimes, so it's probably easier to run into him."

"Mizuki's probably right about that. Plus, he's related to Rio, isn't he?" Erika interjected.

Rio nodded. "hmm… if you want to thank Minami, it'd be really easy. But you probably don't have to. I'll just tell him you said thanks. Or…" She trailed off. Suddenly, she had an idea. Rio smiled. "Don't worry Mizuki-chan, I'll help you."

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"That's your master plan? To go to the Second Dormitory to see Minami-kun, ask him where Sano's room is, and then go find him? What an anticlimax. Rio! You had me all excited," Shuna laughed at her friend.

"The point is to find Sano and let Mizuki-chan spend as much time with him as possible," Rio replied. What we'll do is we'll ask Minami what Sano's room number is, I'll distract Minami when Mizuki-chan goes to find Sano and she can talk to him until I go and find her." She turned to Mizuki "Don't worry; I'll make sure you have sufficient time with him Mizuki-chan. You have to say you came with your friend (which is me) and that you got lost. Then, you ask if you can stay with him until your friend comes to find you. Ok?"

Mizuki nodded happily. She couldn't believe she would have a chance to meet Sano again. She gave Rio a quick hug. "Thank you!"

Rio laughed. "Thank me when everything's worked out!"


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